Behind the Lens

The photo booth company helping Houstonians make memories one pose at a time

Photo booths have exploded in popularity, and having one at your event is almost a given nowadays. But it definitely makes a difference who you rent from, and not just in what types of machines they can provide.

PicMe Events believes in the power of moments. It’s not just about taking a picture or video — it’s about creating an experience that brings people together, sparks joy, and leaves lasting memories.

Hear a little bit more about the company, its founders, and what drives them to make every event unforgettable.

Meet the founders: Michael Vayner and Eric Reed

Behind PicMe Events are two dedicated co-founders who bring their unique talents and hearts to the business every single day.

Michael Vayner, the operations expert
Michael is the organizational backbone of PicMe Events, making sure everything runs smoothly before, during, and after each event. He ensures every detail aligns with their clients' visions and executes it to perfection.

His family is at the center of everything he does: his loving wife, Holly, and their two daughters, Leora and Eliana. In a beautiful turn of events, the couple is currently in the middle of adopting a 7-year-old girl, expanding their family and love even further.

Eric Reed, the creative visionary
Eric is the artistic soul of PicMe Events. With an eye for design, he crafts experiences that go beyond traditional photography. He brings a unique blend of creativity and precision to each event, infusing them with personalized details that reflect his clients' personalities and themes.

His family — wife Amy, twin daughters Keely and Kenzie, and son Conrad — inspires him daily and motivates him to put his heart into every event.

Their story: Resilience, passion, and growth
PicMe Events began in 2016 as a part-time project to make some extra income. But life had different plans, and the story of how it grew reflects the challenges and resilience that brought the company to where it is today.

In 2017, Michael’s corporate job was unexpectedly cut. A week later, Hurricane Harvey hit, devastating his family’s home and taking nearly everything. But amid the destruction, Michael managed to save the first piece of PicMe’s equipment — a Mirror Photo Booth — by placing it on the bed to keep it safe from the floodwaters. That small act of hope marked the start of something much bigger.

Later that year, just as things were starting to look up, all of PicMe’s equipment was stolen on Christmas Eve. It was a devastating blow. Yet instead of giving up, Vayner and Reed chose to start anew, reinvesting in new equipment and recommitting themselves to their mission. Since then, they’ve poured their hearts into building PicMe Events from the ground up, and today the business is thriving.

The "why" behind everything
"When we see the smiles on people’s faces, we know this work is worth every moment of hardship," says Vayner. "Each time we provide a photo or video experience, it’s a chance to bring a little more joy into someone’s life, to create memories that people can cherish forever. From weddings and birthdays to corporate events and holiday parties, our job is to help people celebrate and remember their special moments."

"Our families are a big part of this journey, and everything we do is driven by our passion for creating lasting happiness," adds Reed. "Whether it’s Michael’s expertise in operations or my flair for design, we both love using our skills to make people’s events truly special."

Today: Immersive, innovative, and always growing
Fast forward to today, and PicMe Events has grown into something even greater than the pair could have imagined back in 2016. It offers a range of cutting-edge, immersive experiences, from AI photo interactions to the “Bot Ross” AI Draw Bot, which brings a unique, creative touch to any event.

These innovative options allow the company to connect with clients in new ways and keep pushing the boundaries of what a photo booth experience can be.

"Our goal is to help our clients take their events to the next level, creating memories that guests will talk about for years," says Reed.

Discover the PicMe Events difference
"For us, PicMe Events is more than just a business — it’s our way of bringing joy, beauty, and connection to people’s lives," says Vayner. "We’ve faced challenges, but we’ve never lost sight of our purpose. When you choose PicMe Events, you’re not just getting a photo booth; you’re getting a family that’s passionate, resilient, and dedicated to making your event unforgettable."

Photo courtesy of PicMe Events

They offer more than just photo booths.

Come see what so many others have discovered—PicMe Events will elevate your event, adding that special touch that will have your guests talking about it long after the night is over. We’re here to make memories with you, one photo at a time.

PicMe Events is available throughout the Houston and Galveston areas, as well as Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio.

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Movie Review

Camp Miasma puts a comedic twist on the classic slasher movie

Photo courtesy of MUBI

Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson in Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma.

The horror genre really ramped up in the 1970s and ‘80s, bringing the slasher subgenre that gave audiences new visuals of gore, but also a reliance on sexism and homophobia that would come to define the era. The new film Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma wrestles with that legacy in ways that are funny, thought-provoking, and downright strange.

Kris (Hannah Einbinder) is a queer filmmaker who has been hired to reboot the moldy IP that is the Camp Miasma franchise, one that was fresh in the 1970s but which numerous shlocky sequels have rendered irrelevant. In an attempt to get to know the property better, Kris has scored a meeting with the reclusive Billy (Gillian Anderson), the star of the original film who has shunned the public eye for decades.

Turns out that Billy lives deep in the woods at Camp Rivoli, which served as the location for the first film. As Kris tries to get to know Billy and convince her to be a part of the new film, she starts to fall under Billy’s spell and the lore of the franchise as a whole. That includes believing that the movie’s villain, Little Death — a transgender person who has an air conditioning vent as a head/mask — may not just be a character created for the movies.

Written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun (I Saw the TV Glow), the film at first feels like it’s going to go the straight-up comedy route, with comic explosions of blood, a strange fascination with candy brands, and a production design that does nothing to hide that the two main actors are on a movie set with painted backdrops. This is backed up by Kris’ phone conversations with her girlfriend, Mari (Jasmine Savoy Brown) and her agent (Sarah Sherman), as well as numerous other details.

But the film starts to go down the surreal route the longer Kris stays at the camp with Billy, especially when they sit down to watch the original Camp Miasma. An extended sequence shows a good amount of that film-within-the-film, demonstrating why Kris and Billy have a love/hate relationship with the property. For Kris, though, the lines between the film and the real world start to blur, and Schoenbrun uses a variety of out-there elements to drive the point home.

The final act of the film can barely be described as Kris goes deeper down the rabbit hole, with Schoenbrun using her film to comment on the horror genre as a whole, its treatment of women and LGBT people, the movie industry, and more. All the while the “camp” of Camp Miasma maintains a presence, with candy wrappers showing up everywhere and the tongue-in-cheek references to Little Death (the French term La petite mort, which means “the little death,” is a euphemism for orgasm).

Einbinder, an Emmy winner for Hacks, is the perfect person to inhabit her role. Her established real-life and fictional personas color everything she does in the film, with her enthusiasm and curiosity shining through. Anderson leans heavily into another reference — Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard — to create a character that is as mysterious as she is alluring. Supporting actors like Brown, Sherman, Patrick Fischler, Dylan Baker, and Eva Victor keep the movie at the right pitch all the way through.

While other films have made fun of horror movie tropes before, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma finds a wholly unique way of doing so. It’s a funny and daring trip into the psyches of two women who may be victims of their own obsessions, and of the movies that made them that way.

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Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma is now playing in select theaters

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